Her Rebellion
by Dark Ride
Summary: He was going to become her rebellion against the picture that everyone had of her, consequences be damned. Bra was still too young and Goten was still too naive to see the danger in such a way of thinking. Goten/Bra pairing.
1. The Beginning

For some strange reason, Goten/Bra is my absolutely most favourite pairing from the non-canon ones. Let's see how I do with them. No GT.

**Disclaimer:** I hereby disclaim any rights to Dragon Ball/Z and related characters and settings. All of those belong, at least intellectually, to Akira Toriyama. Though I wouldn't mind having Mirai Trunks for myself *grins*

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><p>Bra had always been daddy's little girl. She knew it, her family knew it, everyone who had ever seen her interact with her father knew it. And for the longest time she didn't mind that fact at all. There was something empowering about the situation. A man who had once been a ruthless killer without a shred of mercy in him would do anything for her, all she had to do was ask. And ask she did, frequently and for the stupidest little things and her father always came through and she felt like a princess she really was.<p>

And then she grew up.

She knew how it was supposed to happen. The teenagers were supposed to have conflicts with their parents. She expected those conflicts about curfews and allowances and clothes and loud music and friends who were not good enough for her because she was the Saiyan Princess and no pitiful being on this planet would ever reach her level. Bra had heard it all and she was getting ready to fight for her right to live as she wanted. And yet, no fight had ever occured. Whatever she might have done, her father never stayed angry with her.

She stayed out with her friends until morning. She spent all of her money on clothes she would never wear and cars she would never ride. She dressed up in miniskirts and lowly cut tops that would cause a coronary in any other ordinary father. She brought her friends to their home and they blasted the music on Bra's state-of-the-art sound system and all Vegeta had to say was to tune it down a bit.

Bra was confused and angry. She wasn't perfect. She did everything in her power to show as much to her father, to make him see she was just as tainted as the rest of them but he refused to see. And she was running out of options.

She needed more. She needed to rebel against that unrealistic picture her father had of her. For once she wanted to be treated like Trunks, like a real person with real faults. She wanted to be scolded, to be reminded that the world didn't revolve around her alone, that she wasn't perfect.

She wanted a rebellion of epic proportions. And if the fate didn't hand her one, she would make it herself.

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><p>The only subject where her father's benevolence cracked were the boys. The moment they registered her and more importantly she registered them, Vegeta shifted into the more traditional father role.<p>

_'No dating until she's sixteen'_ and even then it was because her mother had pointed out that had been the age when she herself had started dating. Vegeta would move the age line up to eighty if it was left to him alone.

She went out with the most popular guy in the school on her sixteenth birthday only to be disappointed when she wanted to see a horror movie and he went pale half-way through at the scene of a serial killer dismembering his victims. Bra asked him about that at the late dinner after, expressing her wonder why such an unrealistic scene would cause him discomfort. _'Everyone knows that the femur doesn't break like that under that angle'_, she commented as she popped a ketchup stained fry into her mouth and the guy excused himself and Bra shook her head, thinking him a wuss.

Bra wasn't a fighter in the strictest sense of the word. Her training was sporadic at best, she had only basics down but the Saiyan blood was in her nonetheless and she knew she couldn't be with a guy who didn't understand her world. Her next date was the junior karate champion and it all went well until they sparred together and she punched him into unconsciousness after which he confessed he wasn't sure he could date her anymore. She labeled him a chauvinist for being put off by a girl stronger than him.

There were other attempts at dating, all of them unsuccessful and she couldn't help but notice Vegeta's content expression at her every announcement of yet another date failure. Her father didn't want other men around her but with every unsuccessful venture into the dating world, Bra was starting to doubt whether she wanted a man around her, either.

But she needed a boyfriend. It was about the only thing that unsettled her father enough to shatter that idolized picture he had of her. She just needed to find someone who would fit all of her considerable criteria and piss off her father at the same time.

And that was when she properly took notice of Goten Son.

Goten had always been a part of her life. Her brother's best friend and kind of a brother to her too. Someone who was willing to listen to her complaints when she had been younger, who had taken her and Pan to have an ice-cream when their parents had been busy, someone who was strong and loyal and nice and never once idolized her.

He had called her a spoiled brat a couple of times, ruffling her hair playfully while she had frowned and taken a swipe at him that he had easily dodged and laughed at her afterwards.

He was good looking with that boyish charm still present in his eyes. He was a half-Saiyan like her, someone who wouldn't be squicked out by a discussion of a gory movie and its inaccuracies, someone who wouldn't pout if she managed to beat him in a spar - as unlikely as the event was.

And he was older than her by thirteen years. It was a perfect setup. If dating Goten didn't prove to her father she was no longer his little girl, nothing would.

Bra had made up her mind. Goten Son would become her rebellion against the label everyone placed on her and they both would enjoy every minute of it. She would make sure of that.

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><p><strong>AN:** Short intro to whet your interest. Well?


	2. Chapter 1: Take Me To Heaven

Let's delve into it, shall we?

**Chapter 1:** Take Me To Heaven

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><p>Bra Briefs was not an impulsive person, regardless of what anyone else might have thought. She had a considerable temper, yes, but she wasn't prone to doing things blindly and without at least contemplating the possible outcomes. Her father was a tactical genius as long as he kept his own temper and pride in check, something which had been acknowledged several times in the past battles. Her mother was a genius scientist who had had a lot of experience with executing various experiments and achieving expected results, all due to a careful planning and being able to anticipate the reactions of the variables in said experiments. Bra was their daughter and she had inherited those abilities in full. And finally, she had something to try them on.<p>

The moment Bra decided to pursue Goten romantically, she knew she had a long battle ahead of her. They knew each other fairly well and it was their familiarity with each other that would work against her in this case. Bra knew that she was labeled somewhere in Goten's mind as a young girl who was almost a sister to him, because she was a sister to his best friend. She realized that the first step was to get Goten to see her as Bra - the young woman, not Bra - the Trunks' sister. And the most sure way to achieve that was to spend as much time together as possible.

Unfortunately, there wasn't that much they had in common. Bra was still a high school student, attending the school for the sake of socializing with people her age, not because she needed the education. Goten worked as a martial arts instructor at the dojo that Yamcha had opened up after retiring from baseball completely, occasionally doing stunt work in action movies and last Bra heard, he was thinking of opening his own agency to provide either stunt men or martial arts training for the actors. Their social circles didn't overlap, the only interaction between them happened when one or the other visited the other's family and even then their respective friends occupied the majority of their time. An action had to be taken to change the status quo.

It was the contemplation of which of her jetcopters to take to visit Marron that gave Bra an idea. She could fly on her own but she was far from profficient, preferring a mechanical transport to the organic one. She could do with a refresher course on flying and who better to teach her than Goten, right? She smirked to herself. She knew he would wonder why she was asking him and not her father or brother and she quickly came up with several good reasons, her pride being in the first place among them.

And maybe she could take up her training a notch, too, claiming Goten's tutelage revived her interest in it. Stroking his ego would definitely help and a prolonged physical contact was always useful. Saiyan men were just men in the end and Goten wasn't an exception to the rule.

Bra smiled to herself. The first step was planned out and the execution could begin.

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><p>The opportunity to talk with Goten came less than two weeks later. Pan had turned seventeen, being four months younger than Bra and the Son and Briefs family, along with the other Z-Warriors and their families had all gathered to celebrate their youngest fighter's big day.<p>

After the official part which included gift-giving and a large feast, all those attending split into several groups, catching up on their friends' lives. Bra meandered from one group to the next, waiting for the inevitable moment when Goten would seek out a temporary solitude away from all the noise. She had learned a long time ago that Goten had remained the nature-loving boy deep inside and that he liked to have his moments of peace now and then. She should probably feel sorry for intruding on his alone time but she didn't want anyone to overhear their talk, innocent as it was.

Seeing him heading behind the house, Bra excused herself and grabbed a plate of grilled chicken wings from the table, knowing they were Goten's favourite. Munching on one to keep up appearances, she went around the corner and spotted him lying on the grass, watching the sky. She didn't try to mask her approach and saw him turn his head in her direction, tensing imperceptibly before relaxing again when he recognized her.

"Hey," she greeted, stopping at his side and looking down at him. "Am I intruding?"

"Not really," he replied and sat up, his eyes landing on the plate in her hand. Bra moved it closer to him.

"Want some?" she asked and plopped down next to him without waiting for his response.

"They're yours," he said but took one anyway.

"I have to watch my perfect figure," Bra said with a wink. Goten snorted at that.

"A couple of them wouldn't hurt you, Princess," he teased and Bra nodded.

"I know, but this is my second plate," she fibbed.

"In that case, I'd better help out."

Bra laughed and handed the plate over.

"Please, do so," she said and watched as he ate, content with how the things were going so far. "I had to get away from all the people there," she spoke after a few moments, seeing him nod in agreement. "I hope you don't mind I'm here."

"No, I don't," Goten said. "Since you brought the food," he added jokingly.

"Saiyans!" Bra huffed, perfectly imitating her mother when complaining about her father. Both of them laughed at that but Bra got serious quickly after.

"How have you been recently?" she asked, picking at the grass. Her body language spoke of uncertainty and hesitation and she knew Goten would notice. One didn't become one of the best martial artists in the world if one was unable to read other people.

"Good, I guess," he replied, watching her curiously now. The bait was cast and Bra moved on with her plan.

"Your work going good?"

"Yeah. I'm a bit busy, not much time left for social life but I'm not complaining."

"Oh," Bra intoned, letting a dejected tone be clearly heard in the single syllable. "Good for you."

"What's the matter, Bra?" he was openly frowning, trying to figure out why she would react this way to his answers.

"Nothing," she denied, fidgeting a bit. "It's just..." she trailed off, baiting him further.

"Just what?"

She stood up suddenly, shaking her head.

"Never mind."

She moved to leave but just like she had expected, Goten reached out and caught her wrist, tugging her back down.

"C'mon, you know you can tell me anything," he cajoled her and she turned to him, her eyes big and trusting, covertly cataloguing all of his reactions.

"I meant to ask you a favour but since you are so busy, I don't want to impose," she explained and watched as his concerned face smoothed out and he smiled.

"That's all?" he laughed. "I thought something serious was going on."

Bra frowned and tugged her wrist free from his grasp, turning away and pretending to be insulted.

"It's serious to me but if you're just going to make fun of me, I won't tell you a thing."

"Sorry, Bra," he apologized and she waited just long enough to make him uncertain of her next action before she nodded.

"Apology accepted," she said and turned to face him again.

"Now, tell me what's this favour you wanted to ask me."

"Well," Bra looked down at her hands, folding them primly in her lap. "I was wondering if you could help me with my flying."

"Your flying?" Goten repeated after her disbelievingly. "But you already know how to fly."

"Not well enough," she said. "I'm not fast and it takes too much energy and I haven't practiced in ages, anyway. I want to change that."

Goten nodded thoughtfully, his gaze sweeping over her and she knew he was judging her ki level.

"It shouldn't be a problem to get you better. Your natural ki reserves are quite high, but Bra, why are you asking me? Why not Trunks or your Dad? They would be happy to help out."

Bra smiled and shook her head.

"Trunks is too busy working and keeping up with his own training to keep Dad off his back. Trying to fit me into his schedule would only give him more stress. And as for my Dad, well," she looked away. "He would only be disappointed in the end."

"Bra," Goten spoke up. "You are ridiculous. Nothing you do would ever disappoint Vegeta. Expressing interest in training least of all."

"But I'm not expressing interest in training, see?" Bra implored, quite sure she had him almost convinced. "I just want to improve my flying. I have no intention of doing more and Dad wouldn't get that. He would think that me wanting to fly better is just the first step but it's the only step I want to take."

"I get it now," Goten nodded to himself. "Well, in that case, sure, I'll help you," he grinned at her. "When do you want to start?"

"How about you check your schedule first and let me know when you are free?" Bra suggested, inwardly cheering at how easily it all fell into place.

"All right then," he agreed. "But I have to warn you, I'm a strict teacher," he frowned, pretending to be cross with her. Bra snorted at that and Goten didn't keep the serious face for long, either. They both chuckled at the siliness of it all before Bra got serious once again. Leaning over, she put a hand on Goten's arm, her face honest and full of emotion.

"Thank you, Goten. You have no idea how much this means to me."

And she meant every word she spoke, the genuinity of her words beyond any doubt. Goten smiled and then ruffled her hair.

"Anytime, Bra. You know that."

She batted his hand away, annoyed at this familiar gesture of his. She was no longer a child and hopefully, very soon he would come to realize the same. And she would start reminding him right away.

"I'll be looking forward to the lessons," Bra spoke and then dropped her voice to make it sound more intimate. "I am going to enjoy it very much, when you take me to heaven," she enunciated, the innuendo clear enough to pick up. Goten pulled away, staring at her in surprise before he got an understanding look in his eyes.

"Are you flirting with me?" he sounded half-amused, half-shocked and just for that amusement, Bra would show some claws.

"Yup," she dropped the single word without offering any other explanation.

"Why?"

"Because I need practice," Bra explained sweetly before delivering the punch line. "On old guys."

"Old?" Goten shouted, immensely insulted. "I'm not old."

"Please," Bra waved her hand around carelessly. "You must be pushing forty by now," she pressed on, taking an inordinate amount of glee from his reaction.

"I'm going to be just thirty-one," he defended himself before noticing the twitching at the corners of her mouth and the understanding dawned. "Which you know and you've just been pulling my leg," he concluded and Bra nodded, laughing again.

"Serves you right," she told him. "I can flirt with you if I want. I'm old enough for that. And so are you," she couldn't resist adding at which Goten pulled a face.

"Okay, Princess. Just tone it down. I wouldn't want your Dad out for my blood."

"Don't worry, I don't want to lose my instructor before he can teach me anything useful."

"Good. I'm safe for now. What a relief," Goten didn't bother to mask the sarcasm in his voice but he was suppressing a smile and Bra noticed. It worked out even better than she had expected. She had secured herself a private time with him and she had also made him aware of the fact that she planned to flirt with him. Best of all, he didn't seem too opposed to the idea. All was going well.

"Give me a call when you check your schedule so we can start on those lessons. I can't wait to be taken to heaven," she tossed out again and this time he was ready for that.

"It will be a trip to remember," he volleyed back at her.

"I'm sure of that," standing up, Bra gathered the empty plate and looked down at Goten. "I'll be seeing you later, then."

"Yeah, see you later, Princess."

She left him to enjoy the rest of the afternoon in peace, her own goals met and her mind already swirling with the ideas on how she would proceed from there on. The first step was a success, now to make sure the rest of them were as well.

_TBC_

**A/N:** Yeah, not very angsty for now but the angst will come in due time. _Tricks_ should be updated tommorrow, even though it's Friday 13th. Yuck.


End file.
